Based on all the talk you hear, you’d think beekeepers manhandle all their frames all the time. In truth, the idea of an inspection just for the sake of inspection is a new-beekeeper thing. Each time I mention that inspections should be limited, I get a barrage of comments insisting that inspections are a necessary […] Read more

Queens can get rolled when the beekeeper lifts a frame containing the queen or lifts a frame adjacent to one with the queen. In the tight space between frames, the bees become bunched together or pressed against the comb or frame. If a queen becomes caught in a tight space or within a mass of […] Read more

Nothing makes me more tense and equivocal than a fall hive inspection. I am a firm believer in minimum hive disruption, yet there are compelling reasons to make a pre-winter check. But when I crack open the propolis seals and disturb the cozy nest, a pang of guilt interferes with my own judgment. Am I […] Read more

Note: Today’s post was written by Karen Peteros, a beekeeper and beekeeping instructor in San Francisco. Karen took issue with my post, “Is too much hive inspection a bad thing?” and wrote a dissenting opinion. Her arguments are both articulate and valid. I thought it would be useful, especially for new beekeepers in urban and […] Read more

Hive inspection is a hot topic among beekeepers. I can certainly understand new beekeepers wanting to open their hives and peruse the colony frame-by-frame. It is the very best way to learn about the social structure of a colony, the duties of individual bees, and the physical layout of pollen, honey, and brood. Nevertheless, I […] Read more

Your very first hive inspection can be scary because you are not used to working with bees and you’re not sure what to do or how to do it. Here are a few tips to make easier. To begin Know why you are opening the hive before you do it. It helps to know exactly […] Read more

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The Beekeeper’s Handbook

The Valkyrie Long Hive

Bee Wise

Bee-yond Bees

Bees are more than a hobby;
they are a life study,
in many respects a mirror
of our own society.

—William Longgood

Why Honey Bee is Two Words

Regardless of dictionaries, we have in entomology a rule for insect common names that can be followed. It says: If the insect is what the name implies, write the two words separately; otherwise run them together. Thus we have such names as house fly, blow fly, and robber fly contrasted with dragonfly, caddicefly, and butterfly, because the latter are not flies, just as an aphislion is not a lion and a silverfish is not a fish. The honey bee is an insect and is preeminently a bee; “honeybee” is equivalent to “Johnsmith.”

—From Anatomy of the Honey Bee by Robert E. Snodgrass

State Insects

The non-native European Honey Bee is the state insect of:

Arkansas

Georgia

Kansas

Louisiana

Maine

Mississippi

Missouri

Nebraska

New Jersey

North Carolina

Oklahoma

South Dakota

Tennessee

Utah

Vermont

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Not one native bee is a state insect. The closest relative of a North American native bee to make the list is the Tarantula Hawk Wasp, the state insect of New Mexico.

iNaturalist

Where Are Your Hives?

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Mission Statement

Honey Bee Suite is dedicated to honey bees, beekeeping, wild bees, other pollinators, and pollination ecology. It is designed to be informative and fun, but also to remind readers that pollinators throughout the world are endangered. Although they may seem small and insignificant, pollinators are vital to anyone who eats.